The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday edition that with inflation nearly defeated and the job market cooling, Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell announced on Friday that the Fed is ready to start reducing its key interest rate from its current 23-year high. An Associated Press dispatch to The Globe reports that Mr. Powell did not specify the timing or size of the rate cuts, but it is widely anticipated that the Fed will announce a small 0.25 percentage-point cut in its benchmark rate at its mid-September meeting. "The time has come for policy to adjust," Mr. Powell said during his keynote speech at the Fed's annual economic conference in Jackson Hole, Wyo. "The direction of travel is clear, and the timing and pace of rate cuts will depend on incoming data, the evolving outlook, and the balance of risks." His mention of multiple rate cuts was the only indication that a series of reductions is probable. Mr. Powell stressed that inflation appears largely under control. He said, "My confidence has grown that inflation is on a sustainable path back to 2 per cent." Mr. Powell's assurance that rate cuts are coming helped fuel a rally on Wall Street. Bond yields fell and stock indexes were broadly higher.